Lullaby
by Cherrylin
Summary: "The song of our first and last night together.."


Happy Halloween, everyone! It's been a while, and I apologize for that.. Been some busy months, really looking forward to graduating my school.. even if university will be even more stressful, ahaha.. Anyway, I have a little thing I'd like to show people, too, which you can find on my profile page. It's a download, and no, it's not a virus. It takes maybe 5 minutes, excluding download time.

Aside from that, here's my latest work! Or actually no, not my _latest_ work, but latest finished work that is ready to be published! Enjoy!

- Cherrylin.

P.s.; I want to thank the people who read this before it was uploaded and gave me feedback!

* * *

**Lullaby**

Her scream no longer echoed off the wall, but she couldn't fight back the pained moaning and the gasping for air that still escaped her lips. She grabbed the wrist of the hand that pinned down her right shoulder, while her other hand sought the handle of the blade that was bored into her left side, an instinct to remove the source of pain from her body.. but it met the hand of her attacker, who hadn't let go of the knife and surely had no intention to change that fact.

She opened her eyes narrowly, looking up at what could've been her reflection, wasn't it for her completely opposite expression.. her twin-sister was sitting astride on her, but that wasn't really the weight that kept Mion to the ground; it was her eyes, her calm, soft eyes, and her gentle, friendly smile..

Her sister bent down, leaning close to her face, her cheek lightly brushing hers. "I'm going to kill you, Shion," she whispered tenderly. Mion gritted her teeth in pain as her sister drilled the knife deeper into her side, ever so slowly. "Give her back to me, and I might make it a little less painful..."

"Nghh.. wh.. what..?" A drop of sweat ran down her temple.

"Give Mion back to me.." Shion's voice was slightly colder as she picked up her head a little, just enough to meet the eyes of her sister. She was still smiling softly, but continuously sinking the blade into Mion's delicate side.

The tomboy would've heard the clock ticking, wasn't it for how timeless this moment felt, wasn't it for the piercing ringing in her ears. Her body was tingling, shaking and sweating, heating up.. and yet, she was frozen in her fear. She was groaning in pain, jolts darting through her nerves like electric shocks originating from the knife.

"I don't understand what you're saying," Shion said innocently, sitting back and tilting her head a little bit in confusion. "Please, speak up," she made a quick advance into her sister's side, forcing a whimpering gasp out of Mion.

"I.. Wh... You're.. nghh, it's.. that's…" She gave up talking, panting and desperately trying not to focus on the pain so she could think clearly.. what to do, what to do, what to do? How could she get out of this? She had to get out of it! Or did she? This couldn't be happening. It had to be a dream, a nightma-another jolt reminded her that it was indeed real.

Shion's smile dropped ever so slowly, till she looked.. disappointed. Unamused. Bored. "What are you saying, Shion?"

..Shion? Mion however had no time to make a connection before her sister leaned back down to her.

"You became so.. _quiet_!"

Mion yelped up in pain as the knife sliced downwards, her body tensing up and flinching. "Hng.. it.. hurts.. Sh.. Shion, please, sto_AAARGH_!"

A loud scream forced out all the air in her lungs as the knife was suddenly pulled out of her side.. and above her, Shion had leaned back and was smiling again, almost like.. a happy child..

"M..Mion," the tomboy gasped. "Mion-on..onee..s..sama.. F-forgive me.."

For a moment, Shion's eyes seemed to be set aflame with rage, and she had a twisted grin plastered to her face as she let out a low chuckle.. before her face reverted back to that of innocence. "Forgive you?" she asked, sounding puzzled.

"F-forgive.. me, Mion..onee-sama.." She gasped, trying to look into the eyes of her sister. "I.. I b-beg of you.."

"Oh, go ahead and beg, Shion.." She rolled her eyes, but still carried a friendly face.. she might as well just have called Mion 'hopeless' in an affectionate joke...

"I.. beg of you.. to.. f-forgive me for what I-"

"You call that begging?!" Suddenly furious, she stabbed the knife into her shoulder, and let go of it, grabbing Mion's collar with that hand. Then she grinned, showing her teeth.

"I BEG OF YOU! PLEASE, MION-ONEESAMA, I'LL DO ANYTHING!" Mion screamed, desperately.

Smiling softly, Shion jerked out the blade and laid it on the ground. She put her hands, her right hand stained in the blood of her sister, gently on Mion's cheeks. "That was more like it, my little sister. Now I might consider your request," she giggled sweetly. "Might," she tapped her sister's nose with her right hand. "If you give Mion back to me. You know.. you've borrowed her for long enough."

"I'll give her back," Mion sobbed. She felt insane, talking like this. "She's yours, I don't even want her.. see? I'm Shion," she smiled anxiously. "I'm Shion, I'm Shion, I'm Shion.. See it?" How did this even work..? Her own blood tickled down her chin and throat...

Shion gave her a disappointed look, frightening the twin. "Why do you lie to me, Mion? It's like I'm not even your sister, the way you lie to me."

"I'm not lying!" Mion desperately cried, terrified. "I'm not lying! I'd never lie to you, Oneesama! Please believe me Sh-..Believe me, Mion!"

"Ah," Shion sat back, letting go of her sister. "I'm sorry. I'm scaring you. Say, then," Mion didn't fail to notice she took her knife again, "where's Satoshi-kun?"

"I.." the tomboy's voice was shaking, and she felt how her body tensed up to prepare for whatever punishment she was in for.. for telling the truth. "I don't know.. please.. please, please, believe me, I-"

"You just can't stop lying, can you? But that's alright." Shion now smiled again.. friendly, open... compassionately. "I forgive you."

Mion's heart skipped a beat. "I.. T-thank.. you... Mion-sama, thank-"

"Do you know why I forgive you?"

Her teary, red eyes tried to focus on her sister's, as she shook her head honestly.

Huffing once, Shion muttered a low "I thought so," with closed eyes, before opening them again and looking at her twin. "You know it's all your fault. You're the one who killed Satoshi-kun-"

"Mion, I'd never!"

"Hush, hush, dearest sister, I know. I know Shion would never hurt Satoshi-kun." Talking as if to a confused child, she bowed down slightly to pet her sister's hair. "But you were Mion then. I had lent her to you, because you wouldn't stop crying. It wasn't fun to be Shion, you would much rather be Mion so you could try out things Shion never would. You wanted to be Mion so you could test your powers.. your influence. You wanted to see just how much power Mion had. And since you were really Shion, you knew you could just go back and be the good-hearted and loyal girl you always were, and then I could start fixing up your mistakes." Shion's eyes darkened, and she stopped petting her sister. "I never did something like that to you. When I lent Mion to you, I took good care of Shion."

Mion trembled, and the pain in her side had finally settled to a constant throbbing, opposed to the earlier numb tingling. Her sight couldn't stay focused, flickering between clear and blurry. "No.." was all she could really mutter, wanting to deny what her sister told her.. wanted to deny all of this...

"Maybe you didn't kill Satoshi-kun," her hand slowly ran down her twin's cheek... "but you didn't stop it," Shion growled. "I would've stopped it. Had I been Mion then, I would've stopped it. For Shion couldn't do anything.. but Mion could. Mion could've stood up for her friend and saved him. But you didn't do that..." With no pressure, she put her hand around her sister's neck. "You didn't save him.."

"Mion-sama.." the tomboy reached out, carefully, for Shion's elbow...

"So give her back," she growled. "GIVE MION BACK TO ME, YOU RUTHLESS BRAT!"

Shion tightened her grip around Mion's throat, and raised the knife up above her getting ready to strike. But the tomboy forced her sister to bend her arm, making Shion lose her balance and fall off. Mion rolled over, feeling the most relentless jolt of pain in her side as she tried to get up. Supporting her weight with her arms, she felt sick over the sound of her blood spattering on the floor.

With panic in her heart, she turned her head towards Shion, expecting her to attack her.. and surprised to see her sister sitting on the floor, giving her the most sympathetic expression the girl could surely manage..

"Poor Shion," she said calmly and sighed, looking down at her lap. "She's only a little girl inside. It's not her fault. Mion should never have given her so much responsibility, she couldn't handle it.." Shion got up, and then continued to look at her sister. "Mion shouldn't have given in when Shion cried.. but she only did it out of love. She only pitied Shion. Shion was her precious little sister."

Mion swallowed, and tried to get up. She struggled, but managed through supporting herself against the wall. The twins stared at each other for a little while, the tomboy feeling gradually weaker as more and more blood left her, despite she pressed a hand to the wound.

They were both silent for a while, simply watching the other. Then, as Mion decided she had to get away, she was halted by a low laughing.. and she turned her attention to her sister again, to see her shoulders jerking and sides heaving as she laughed.. first quietly, but then all of a sudden, she burst into a laughing fit.

"AHA HA HA HA HA! LOOK AT YOU! EVEN AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, YOU STILL CAN'T BE MION PROPERLY! THIS IS WHY I FORGIVE YOU! YOU'RE SO PATHETIC! YOU'RE JUST LIKE A LITTLE CHILD! A LITTLE CHILD, CAUGHT WITH HER HAND IN THE COOKIE JAR!"

Mion turned, struggling toward the door.

"AND NOW YOU THINK YOU CAN LEAVE ME, AHA HA HA HA HA! IT'S AMAZING!"

Reaching the door, Mion almost felt more worried that her sister _wasn't_ trying to stop her.. she fumbled around the door handle, pushing it down, then tried again and again.. until she came to the realization the door was locked.

"YES, JUST TRY TO LEAVE! SEE IF YOU CAN!" Shion's laughter died out. "See if you can, Shion.. For even if you're just an innocent little kid, you still need to be scolded.. So see if you can get away this time, little girl."

Long before Mion would ever have had a chance to run, Shion darted toward her.. and then, everything went black.

**'''**

"_We are sisters. We will always be sisters. Our differences may never go away, but neither, for me, will our song._" - Elizabeth Fishel

**'''**

A soft humming reached her ears as she woke up, the chanting naggingly familiar, though she was unable to put a name on it. It was soothing though.. it made her feel at ease, it made her feel safe...

But as she gathered her thoughts, opening her eyes, she remembered that if there was anything she wasn't, it was safe. The dimly lit ceiling above her was not that of her room's, but she recognized it as that of her sister's bedroom. And slowly, it all came back to her, and her heart missed a beat at the realization of just how much danger she was in. She had to get out; _now_.

Mion lunged forward to sit up, only to feel a paralyzing pain strike her right back into the mattress. Hadn't it been for her determination to not get caught by her crazy twin outside the room, she would definitely have given in to her instinct to scream. However, though strong, she couldn't keep back a gasp through her gritted teeth.

_Shit_, she looked around in the room, her eyes wet with pressing tears. Shion had even barricaded the window with wooden planks.. even if she got out of bed, she'd never get out of the apartment without passing her sister.. who was probably sitting out in the kitchen.. humming...

A phone.. Surely, there was a phone in the- yes. Yes, there it was. On her desk. If she could only reach it and call someone for help.. She had to get up. Had to get to the phone. It was her only hope.

Carefully, she tried to get up, wanting to support her weight with her arms only to realize her left shoulder had no intention of letting it be easy for her. _Damn it.._, Gritting her teeth, she restricted herself to only using her right arm to drag her beaten body to the edge of the bed. She lowered her feet over the edge of the mattress quietly, sinking down along the side of the bed to sit on her heels, her eyes focused on the phone. Resting her right arm on the bed for support, she hauled herself up, avoiding most of the intense pain in her side by keeping her spine straight.

Huffing but trying to keep quiet, she slowly approached the phone, wincing in pain at every step she took. Who would she even call? Her grandmother? No, she'd then have to call the yakuza or someone to help. It'd take too long. Her parents? They probably weren't home, they rarely were. Keiichi? No, his parents would definitely take the phone first. Rena?

"Oh, you're finally awake!" Shion said ever so joyfully, halting Mion only a meter from the desk. "I was so worried, how are you?"

The tomboy didn't know if she should cry or laugh, but ended up just looking at her sister.. wearing her clothes.. the yellow shirt.. the blue pants.. having her hair tied up in a ponytail. It felt more like she was looking into her usual reflection than her sister.

When she didn't reply, Shion tilted her head. "Hey, are you alright? Do you need anything, Shion?"

_Shion..._ Right.. Right, she had to stick to that.. her sister was 'Mion' now, and she was 'Shion'. If she messed that up, she'd unleash hell on herself. She was briefly relieved that she was reminded of that. "I'm, erh.. I'm okay." An absolute lie.

Shion smiled.. Perfectly... normally. Happily. "Just say if you need something, y'know?"

"I'm fine. I don't need anything, thanks.. Mion..-oneesama."

The expression on Shion's face could've been compared to that of a puppy wagging its tail as she gleamed up in a second of pride, then she looked as if playfully suspicious. "Oh? You know, as you just said, I _am_ your sister after all! Just look at us!" She jumped forward, grabbing her twin's shoulders - Mion gritting her teeth in pain briefly before suppressing it - and turned them both toward the mirror at the other wall. "See?"

As she looked at the reflection, the first thing Mion noticed was the set of clothes she was wearing.. it was her twins', one of her buttoned pajamas. It was a light, salmon-pink color, with a swirly pattern woven in gold... not unpretty, but just not _her_. Though that wasn't all she saw in the mirror.. and she felt a stab in her heart at the realization, that this mirror, showed a much better world... a world, where she and her sister were together.. Shion looked happy. So often had they hung out and messed around with each other. Shion had dressed her up in the past, always determined to find something that could embarrass her sister..

But that wasn't how it was now. That was only the reflection in a mirror.. the throbbing pain in her side and shoulder wouldn't let her forget that...

"Oh, just a second!" Shion said suddenly and went to her dresser, taking a yellow ribbon out of one of the drawers, and took the brush on the desk on her way back. As she brushed Mion's hair, there wasn't a trace of the insanity the girl had showed when she had attacked her earlier..

"There!" She tied her hair up in the ribbon, before hugging Mion from behind, putting her head on her right shoulder as they looked into the mirror. "Almost fit for a date!" A moment or two passed, then Shion laughed. "Ah but you aren't going anywhere till you feel better, of course!"

Mion forced a wry smile. Somehow, this was only getting more terrifying...

They stood there for a little while, the tomboy wondering when her twin would let go.. and yet when she finally did, she felt a pang of realization; she was alone...

"I'll fix some dinner up. You take it easy now, okay?" After giving Mion a light peck on her cheek, Shion went outside the room, humming again.

Deeply exhaling the air that she had had trapped in her lungs to prevent wailing up in pain in Shion's presence, approached the mirror. She studied herself, feeling.. confused. It was as if she wasn't staring at herself, which probably wasn't weird considering her sister was an identical twin, but..

She unbuttoned the shirt, first looking at her shoulder. It was neatly bandaged, and not soaked in blood. Having no idea how long she had been out, there was no telling if it wasn't bleeding bad, or if Shion had been replacing the bandage a lot. Opening all the buttons, fumbling due to how uncooperative her left arm was, she saw it was the same case for her side. A good, thick layer of bandage was wrapped around her stomach.

Sighing, she buttoned the shirt again, and focused her senses.. she could smell the food her sister was preparing, could hear the occasional scraping as she stirred in the pot.. and the humming. It almost gave her a headache trying to remember what that song was.. she had heard it before. But where?

It didn't matter. She had to get out. And now was probably the only chance she'd get to call for help.

Turning around, she went back toward the phone, and upon grabbing the receiver, her body was trembling. _Rena, oh please.. please, please, please..._ If only she could make a quiet phone call, Rena could gather help.. and she herself could surely keep Shion calm for that long..

Her fingers were fumbling as she dialed the number, a pang of panic as she thought she might've forgotten it. _Pick it up, pick it up, pick it up!_

The beeping noise seemed to last forever. She was shaking, sweating. Did everything in her power to just gather what she had to say.. A brief greeting, quickly informing her who was calling, where she was, and that she was in danger from her sister.

_Pick up the phone, Rena, pick it up.._

Shion's humming in the kitchen didn't soothe her now.

_RENA PICK IT UP!_

She swore she could've blacked out on the floor, right here and right now, but she refused. She had to get out.. no matter what, she had to get out of here, and it could only take too long before-

"Hello, Ryūgū residence, Reina here."

Rena's voice made her body freeze. There really was a chance, she could get home, but now she couldn't talk. All words, her entire vocabulary.. it was as if gone.

"Hello?"

Mion swallowed, her voice low. "Help.."

A moment of hesitation on the other end before Rena spoke again. "Who am I talking to? Where are you?" Her voice wasn't suspicious at all, only worried.

"M..Mion..." she whispered.

"Sorry?"

"It's Mion," the girl's voice was shaking as she spoke up a bit. "Look, Rena, I need your help. I don't know what's up with Shion, but she's going crazy! Please, help me! I'm trapped at her apartment, and I-"

She suddenly noticed a beeping noise.. the call was over.

There were no words that could describe the immense despair and apprehension that made every fiber of her being spasm with fear, she almost forgot how to breathe.. a finger that was not her own was pressing down the switchhook... she was caught. Like a mouse trapped in a corner by a cat.. a blind mouse.. with all its legs broken..

Shaking, she turned her head slowly to look at her sister...

Shion was crying. She was expressing disappointment and anger, but tears were streaming down her face, as she stared at Mion with fire in her eyes. "You just can't stop lying, can you?" Her growling voice was quavering. "It's disgusting."

She took a step toward her, Mion backing away immediately.

"Here I am. Your big sister. Trying to take care of you, _Shion_. Ready to give you another chance, _Shion_, despite you sure as hell don't deserve one, you _murderer_." She was walking toward her in a slow, threatening pace. "You're nothing but an immature little kid.. who, for some reason, nobody bothered to raise.. bothered to scold. But don't worry.."

Mion felt her back hit the mirror on the wall, her rapid heart pounding painfully at her ribs.

"I'll punish you for lying," her lips curved in a wide smile, lifting her tear-stained cheeks slightly.

As if that was her cue, the tomboy darted past her sister, the adrenaline enough to force herself through the pain that jolted up through her side.

"YEAH, SEE IF RUNNING HELPS YOU! YOU _COWARD_! YOU COULD ALWAYS GET OUT OF EVERYTHING WITHOUT A SCRATCH! NOT EVEN THE POLICE COULD ARREST YOU FOR ASSAULTING THE DAM WORKERS, COULD THEY? NO, YOU ONLY HAD TO WHINE A LITTLE BIT TO GO UNPUNISHED!" Shion screamed as she walked after her sister.

Looking around in the kitchen, Mion saw that even here, the windows were barricaded.. had she ripped apart a shelf or something for this? She looked over her shoulder to see Shion standing in the door, watching her.. in absolutely no hurry... that seemed only more concerning than if she had given chase..

She swallowed. "Shion, please, please stop this bullshit.."

The girl narrowed her teary eyes.

"A-alright, alright, _Mion_! Mion-oneesama!" She was laughing slightly, feeling as if she was going crazy. "Look, you can have the heirship, all for yourself, no matter what your name is! I don't even want it! Take it, just take it, and let me go!"

"Let you go? Again?" Shion gritted her teeth.

_..again?_ "Yes! Let's just forget about it all, okay!? So we can be happy, and laugh and just.. just.." she was smiling anxiously.

"Forget about it all?"

"Yeah!" It was hopeless..

Shion nodded her head a bit, biting her lower lip as she looked to the side. "Mhm. Forget about it. Right. Forget all about how you didn't save Satoshi-kun. Yes, why don't we. Why don't we let you go unpunished?" She turned her attention back to her sister. "Because you're a _spoiled little brat_!"

The tomboy never managed to avoid her sister as she lunged at her and threw them both on the floor, rolling over and falling over herself. Mion immediately fought back up, but never got beyond the support of her arms before Shion threw her body at her again, knocking her over and pinning her down on her stomach. She then laid down on her, hissing into her ear. "You'll _never_ borrow Mion again.."

Mion howled up in pain as her sister drove a knife through the back of her right hand, nailing it to the floor. Then her head was lifted up by her hair, Shion forcibly making her look at her.. she was smiling.. entertained... _enjoying_ it. "And if you won't give her back to me willingly, I'll just have to take her myself.. and make sure you never try to defile me again," she sneered, and let go of Mion's hair with a violent push to the floor as she got up.

The tears were streaming down Mion's face, she sniffled as her nose bled, but still fought back crying. As she looked at her hand, and yet never really saw it, she wondered how much Rena had heard.. if Rena was on her way.. could she still get out of here?

Shifting, her side jolted up in pain again. She tried to reach her left hand out toward her right, but her shoulder held her back. She tried, maybe mostly instinctively in an attempt to just do something, to move her right hand, but felt that even the simplest effort was unforgivably painful.

She was caught. The cat had caught her, and was now going to play with her before killing her..

Closing her eyes, she thought back.. back to when she and her sister were happy.. She thought of school.. of Rena, of Satoshi.. Satoko, Rika... and Keiichi.. her friends.. the club.. She thought of her family... the heirship. The village. The martial arts club. The village. Her home. Her room. Her games, her lamp, heck, even her desk...

It'd all be gone by tonight.

Shion was humming again as she came back.. the same, damned melody... it nagged Mion's troubled mind, but she felt almost grateful it could take her attention as her sister squatted down beside her.. lifting up her shirt.. cutting off her bandage.

That was till she screamed, feeling a boiling water be poured over her back as Shion tilted the pot over her. "Do you feel it, Shion!? It's almost like being born again, isn't it!? All warm at first! Safe and comfortable in mother's womb!" The pot was empty, and Shion moved slightly around. "Then thrown into a world full of cold and hate!" Pouring ice cold water over her, Mion's skin felt as if it was ripping up.

She couldn't fight the crying anymore.

"How does it feel, Shion!? Remember it!? Remember when we were born!? No, of course you don't! But remember what _happened!?_ YOU, not me, YOU, Sonozaki SHION, the younger of the twins, was meant to be strangled before your first bath!"

Shion grabbed her left shoulder and rolled Mion over, the tomboy's right arm twisting with her palm pressed against the floor. She looked up at her sister, her vision blurry, but clear enough to see how Shion's furious, crying expression turned soft and gentle.

"But you were spared. They spared you. You were given a chance at life. So tell me," she sat down on top of Mion, "what right did you have, to cry and say you wanted to try mine? What right did you have, to become the heiress, to have that tattoo on your back? But most importantly, what right did you have, to let Satoshi-kun die?" She smiled with an amused huff, yet her voice had a hint of a bittersweet, hoarse sorrow. "None, Shion. Absolutely none."

Almost gently, the girl put her hands to Mion's neck, their eyes locking. "You've been an amazing little sister, Shion. But I cannot risk you taking any more lives in my name." She started clenching her fingers around the tomboy's throat, gradually putting more and more pressure. "Goodnight. I'll see you again, one day. And then we can be happy and have fun together again. I promise."

She hummed, softly and soothingly.

Mion saw how everything became gradually darker.. she felt all the pain and fear leave her.. she felt how her senses disappeared, and soon the only thing she could hear, was her sister's gentle chanting.. and as she drew her last breath, her last memories were of the very lullaby their mother always sung, as she lulled her daughters to sleep.


End file.
